Category: Field Gear

Lighting a Fire Under Myself, by Matthew B.

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.” – Robert A. Heinlein Heinlein’s quote leaves me feeling about half an inch tall and roughly the length of a worker bee. I was raised to trust God, not government, and my education through …


The Plan “B” Map, by T.L.F.

To everyone who reads this article, I want you to ask yourself one question: “If a major catastrophe happened tomorrow, would I be ready?” In all honesty, my answer would be no. For me, this is a very scary scenario. I do my best to budget, plan and  continue to stock my supply closet with food and water, but we all know in our current economic state,  it is becoming increasingly difficult to find the funds to build up supplies for “The End of the World as We Know It”. I know there are many people out there who are …


Product Review: The Don’t Die Out There! Card Deck

The Don’t Die Out There! Card Deck is one of the card decks that doubles as an information source, in this case, on disaster response. It’s printed on very sturdy plastic coated stock, about twice as heavy as typical decks, but the same overall thickness. It’s well organized, with each suit covering different areas–Diamonds: survival essentials, signals, navigation and shelters. Spades: situational assessment, evac techniques, water, fire and food. Hearts: First aid, environmental and medical concerns. Clubs: CPR, severe trauma and evacuation of the injured. The Aces serve as indexes, and Jokers as forewords. It’s a handy pocket survival book …


Letter Re: Making Land Navigation and Stealthy Movement Fun

Taking a page from my Marine Corps training from way back and utilizing the civilian environment which we are in I believe I have come across a fun way for groups/families to practice land navigation (land nav) and stealth/concealment at the same time. I have two young teen age children and have been trying to teach them land nav which is somewhat fun for a short time but they haven’t really gotten it yet. One thing kids really like is hide and seek another is to camouflage up. I liked it and in the past become very proficient and blending …


Letter Re: Family Preparedness: How to Protect Your Infant Child

Good morning Mr. Rawles, In regards to the “Family Preparedness: How to Protect Your Infant Child“, I just wanted to comment that wool diaper covers need to be washed less often, do not smell at all and two is all you need. Plus, they are just more comfortable for infants than plastic, no matter how cute or functional. They also breathe better and keep baby warm even when wet, which is important if you are changing less often than usual. Mother-Ease diapers are handy – no folding, no velcro, and they are one-size fits all. You can also buy doublers …


Letter Re: Garage Sale Prepping

This has been covered before, but I’d like to reinforce that use of garage sales for low-key cash purchases of essential survival items. In the past two months I’ve been making weekend trips to various community garage sales – spending an average of less than $20 per weekend. Most of the items cost me less than $10 each and I often only paid $1 or $2. The following is a partial list of the haul: 2 – Complete dissection kits with scalpels, forceps, etc 1 – Craftsman toolbox, steel, in good condition 1 – 19th Century wrench 1 – Drawknife …


Family Preparedness: How to Protect Your Infant Child, by Jen J.

When my son was around three months old, I needed to run out and pick up milk and a small tool my husband had on order at a local hardware store.  I anticipated the total outing to be around an hour, and thought I had packed appropriately.  We successfully made it to the farm where I picked up our milk for the week, and placed the glass jugs on the floor of the car.  During the drive to the hardware store, my son woke up and started fussing which rapidly escalated to a full-blown tantrum.  When exiting the freeway, the …


Letter Re: What I Learned on My Summer Vacation

Dear Sir: I believe I represent the younger group of your readers. I’m 28 years old, third year medical student. I have no wife, kids or major responsibilities beyond school at the moment. I have a Facebook account which I mainly use for socializing with classmates of friends back home. Also as a relatively young adult/student I enjoy the long summer vacations many of my contemporaries do not due to work or other obligations. However unlike many of my classmates and friends I was born and raised up to the age of 14 in the former Soviet Union and have …


Letter Re: Bug Out Vehicle – Re-Inventing the Car Trunk

Hi SurvivalBloggers, I just watched this video: Bug Out Vehicle – Re-Inventing the Car Trunk (more of a slide show) that was mentioned in SurvivalBlog. I see a couple of obvious problems. Firstly; If he is going through all of this trouble to provide space for emergency/survival gear in case of emergency, why is he leaving the small donut spare tire in there? They are not rated for high speed, heavy loads, or extended distances. Go pick up a spare rim and tire! Yes, a full size spare weighs more, and takes up a bit more room… but in my …


Advice on a One Man Git Kit, by J.S.I.

Growing up in a family which camped a lot, the family slang for what is now usually called the B.O.B. was “the Git Kit.”  As I am now an ossified old coot, I reserve the right to keep calling it just that. Something I have noticed in most written descriptions of BOBs/Git Kits is a generality of speech bordering on the uselessly vague.  No weights, no measures, no manufacturers, no clues!  It’s enough to give  Horace Kephart’s ghost a ripping case of hives. With that in mind, I dug into my gear with the goal of providing a more detailed, …


Letter Re: A Recommended Vehicular G.O.O.D. Kit Packing List

Jim: I developed the following vehicular bug out bag (BOB) or “Get Out of Dodge” (G.O.O.D.) kit packing list. [JWR Adds: There is no “one size fits all” for G.O.O.D. lists. Your own list should be tailored for your personal circumstances. Your age, climate, local terrain, local hydrology, population density, physical fitness, and many other factors will necessitate changes to the following list. There are also vast differences between “what you can carry in your car” versus “what you can carry on your back” lists.]   Food & Water: ­­3 – 10 days of lightweight food _____ MRE (1 = …


The P6 Preparedness Matrix, by L2L

The P6 Preparedness Matrix (priorities + planning + products + provisions + practices + perspective = preparedness) is at the core of success in life. Each of these aspects are essential if we are to be prepared for what ever may befall us in any area of life; both the normal dailies as well as situations unique or unusual to us including long term survival. Think of a six sided cube. These six aspects frame the P6 Preparedness Matrix and thereby define and appropriately constrain our actions (our preparedness if you will) in any situation. These six aspects, for the …


Letter Re: Prepping and Pregnancy

Good Morning Mr. Rawles, Last year my former boss–with whom we used to have a Bible study–and who is a former Marine, called me up on a Saturday morning, and inquired about a firearm that I would recommend for a semiautomatic sidearm that he and his wife would be able and to shoot comfortably. Without knowing much about what he had in mind, I told him about the top companies, and that a 9mm would be sufficient for his wife, as long as they used +P or +P+ defensive hollow-points with a heavy bullet weight, and if even this was …


Airsoft for Survival Training Adventure, by John Durfee

You see the open field coming up, and the only way to access the bridge to cross the river is to also traverse the field. You’ve been following them for several miles now and certainly don’t to reveal your position. You’ve trained extensively for this, and you decide to cross using the stalking crawl also known as the Sniper crawl. If you don’, then you’ll surely lose all the ground you have gained on them. You successfully make it to the other side, and much to your delight, they are resting on a fallen tree on the other side. You …


Letter Re: Ecuador’s Uplands as a Retreat Option

Dear Jim: Amid decisions about planning to weather the storm after TSHTF I see people dangerously narrowing their strategy options. They are putting all their eggs in one basket when conditions could require them to abandon those plans. The typical options are flight, fortress, and community and any of the three could wind up being best… or worst! Let me share a few thoughts on the flight option. Flight usually involves bug-out bags, bug-out vehicles, defensive armaments, haste, maybe stealth, with hopefully one or more pre-stocked destinations. But what if a hazard has affected a huge region, making your pre-stocked …